Letter-opener.



- H. M. YORKE.

LETTER OPENER.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT-22, 1914.

1,15%489, Patented Oct. 19,='1915.

COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH (IO-,WASHINOTON, D. C

HORACE M. YORKE, OF FREEPORT, MAINE.

LETTER-OPENER.

Application filed September 22, 1914.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HORACE M. YoRKn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Freeport, in the county of Cumberland and State of Maine,'have invented new and use ful Improvements in Letter-peners, of which the following is a specification.

' An object of the invention is to provide a simple device for use in readily and quickly opening envelops without tearing, mutilating, or obliterating the contents thereof.

The invention contemplates, among other features, the provision of a. simple structure consisting essentially of two parts, namely, a holder forming a guide and the blade, and which are so associated that the device can be readily applied to an envelop to clip a corner thereof and then advanced on the envelop to open an end or edge thereof.

In the further disclosure of the invention reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, constituting a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference denote corresponding parts in all the views, and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the article; Fig. 2 is a perspective View of an envelop showing the opener in position to clip the corner of the envelop for the opening thereof. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the envelop with the opener in position for cut ting open the same. Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the opener partly in section.

Referring more particularly to the views,

I provide a blade 10 which has its inner end secured in a holder 11 formed of a single piece of material bent at its medial portion to provide a flat grip 12 and sides 13, which relatively diverge and have the blade 10 lying therebetween and spaced therefrom, said sides terminating in inwardly bent portions 14 forming clipping members 15, and which, to this end, preferably have their edges 16 Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented @ct. 19, 1915.

Serial No. 862,974.

sharpened or beveled. Referring to the views it will be seen that the length of the sides differs to the extent that one of the portions 14 will be slightly in advance of the other to permit of moving the portions toward each other and have one portion overlap the other so that the edges thereof will clip the envielop at the corner and effect the desired result so that the free end of the blade can be inserted in the envelop and the envelop then slit down the edges thereof. It will be understood that the holder 11 is formed of a spring-like metal so that when the portions 14 have been used to clip the corner of the envelop and the pressure moving the portions toward each other is released, said portions will return to normal position and be spaced apart so that in the use of the device the envelop will be received between the portions 14 and which will furthermore constitute guides to aid in guiding the blade along the edge of the envelop to be slit.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

As a new article of manufacture, a letter opener comprising a body formed of a single piece of spring-like material bent in a substantially U-shaped form to provide diverging sides and inwardly bent portions having cutting edges, with one of said portions adapted to overlap the other when pressure is exerted on the sides, and a blade lying between the sides and having its inner end secured rigidly to the body by its inner extremity, said inwardly bent portions being inclined relatively to the longitudinal edges of said body and inclined relatively to each other.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HORACE M. YORKE.

Witnesses:

WALTER L. EMERsoN, F. H. LIBBY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

' Washington, D. C. i 

